Mularkey's top priority is to make Gabbert better

JACKSONVILLE — One of the first things new Jaguars coach Mike Mularkey did Wednesday when he arrived in Jacksonville was have a one-on-one talk with young quarterback Blaine Gabbert.

Mularkey’s ability to mentor Gabbert will be a key in his bid to turn the Jaguars around.

Gabbert has the lowest passer rating in the NFL this season (65.5) and the Jaguars had the worst offense in the league despite having the league’s leading rusher in Maurice Jones-Drew.

Gabbert said the two talked about “everything.”

“We talked about this past year, his background and where he’s come from, him playing in the league for a while, being a coach and just working and doing things the right way,” Gabbert said. “That was the big thing we agreed on. You’ve got to do things the right way to win games.”

Gabbert said he also talked with Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, who played in Malarkey’s system for the past four years.

“He had nothing but extremely positive things to say,” Gabbert said.

Owner Shahid Khan made it obvious how important Gabbert’s development is to the future of the franchise.

“We have to get him every resource possible,” Khan said. “The Jaguars have a huge investment in Blaine. Our fate is tied to him. I think I’ve been very clear. We can’t win without him.”

One thing Mularkey won’t do is call the plays on the sidelines the way some offense-oriented head coaches do, including Green Bay’s Mike McCarthy and New Orleans’ Sean Payton.

Mularkey said he called plays towards the middle of his second year as head coach in Buffalo and found it wasn’t a good fit for him when he also was wearing the head coaching hat.

“Managing a game, some guys can do that. I’ll be honest with you. Some guys are very good at managing the game and calling plays. I’m not one of them,” he said. “Any one mistake can be the difference in the game. I don’t want to be that guy that thinks he can do it all. I’m not going to do it. Hopefully, I’ll put it in the right hands. That’s what my job is to get that guy in here, get the right guy in here to do that.”

Asked to evaluate Gabbert’s play this season, Mularkey said, “First of all, he’s a competitor and I like that to start. I see some field command from him.”

He said he watched a number of Jaguars’ games earlier this week and also had a quarterbacks coach watch them to get another opinion. Mularkey said the lockout “put him (Gabbert) behind the eight ball.”

“When you miss an offseason and you don’t have a chance to be in that meeting room where it’s not rush-rush and you can control it a little bit, there are so many positives that can come from that.,” Mularkey said.

On what he told Gabbert: “‘I think you’re already going to be a step ahead even coming in your second year.”’

For now, Mularkey said Gabbert needs to take a step back, catch his breath and examine what he needs to do better.

Gabbert said he’s planning to head to his St. Louis home.

He is not able to study videotape with Jaguars coaches until April 2 under the new CBA rules designed to give players more time off. He said he may meet with the Jaguars’ receivers on their own before then.